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Floatism
Floatism is a religion practiced by many of Sargeroth's spiritually-minded citizens. It was founded in the late First Era by a wandering ascetic monk who called himself Brother Zwickel. Floatism has grown increasingly popular within Sargeroth over the years, evolving from the loose philosophy of Brother Zwickel to an established Church complete with its own Clerics, traditions, and a supermarket. BELIEFS and PRACTICES "All is Floating." - First Words of Brother Zwickel to the people of Sargeroth This is the core from which all other aspects of Floatism branch. It is what one would most typically hear a Floatist say in greeting or in passing. It is highly simplistic on the surface, yet when examined more closely one would discover many layers within the meaning of this creed. Floatists view the world through a dualistic lens of Floating versus Groundedness. They believe all people have a natural tendency to Float. Before birth, however, the soul agrees to take upon itself the Fetters of being Grounded in physical reality. They agree to walk painfully across the Earth and experience fully the limitations of Groundedness. The ultimate goal of a Floatist, then, is to Float above all earthly Fetters, and preferably while still within the lifetime. A person's experience of Afterlife, according to Floatist teachings, is determinate upon how much progress they make with their Fetters. After death, the soul Floats to the level of its freedom from limitation, or sinks to the level of its enslavement to Groundedness. These Fetters, designed to be transcended, are documented in greater detail within the original teachings of Brother Zwickel. DOGMA The church of today's Sargeroth has grown substantially from its Zwickelian roots. One word to describe it would be Austerity; usually floating above one's fetters. Ways which encourage practitioners to view themselves as above possessing great wealth, splendor, or luxury. It extols an austere life; simple in nature. One benefit of this Dogma is that it has spurred individuals to be more accepting of having less wealth. Those who are traditionally seen as poor are welcomed by the church under Love, Truth, Wisdom Floats A believer, with their hand touches their heart, their mouth, their third eye (forehead), and finally gesture out and above, presumably toward the sky. This is used in many social interactions. It can be used as a greeting. It can express concern or even alarm at troubling news. It can be a gesture which can be made when the believer makes the choice to let go of the event. The releasing of the negative energy which might lock itself within their heart only barring them further from communion with the Floating God. ORIGINS and HISTORY ZWICKEL ARRIVES Floatism was introduced to Sargeroth in the late First Era by its founder and core teacher, Brother Zwickel. Many centuries had already passed since the Founding of Sargeroth, though in all this time a unified religion had yet to take root. Zwickel believed the conditions to be favorable for spreading his ideology. He constructed the Floating Sanctuary in the desert, beyond the Western Wall of Sargeroth. Within the Sanctuary, Zwickel established the Floating Granary, laboring day and night to harvest wheat. This wheat was baked into wholesome bread, which in turn was offered freely to needy souls who came to the Sanctuary in search of shelter from the desert's nocturnal dangers. Eventually, Brother Zwickel began making regular excursions into Sargeroth in an effort to spread his teachings and attract prospective students. Early efforts were met with little success. The Kessels refused to even allow Zwickel entry into their lands, prompting the teacher to focus his efforts on the commoners of Greater and Low Sargeroth. It was on one of these excursions that Brother Zwickel met Veroth Schosen. A resident of Cliffside, Schosen was a destitute lumber worker in dire financial straits, facing foreclosure on his home. Sensing the possibility for insight into why life was such a struggle, Schosen decided to travel to the Floating Sanctuary and leave a message for Brother Zwickel, asking the teacher to meet with him. Brother Zwickel obliged Schosen. After discussing Floatism over a round of hoppy brew, Schosen decided to leave Cliffside and live with Zwickel in the Floating Sanctuary, becoming his very first student and acolyte. Schosen helped Brother Zwickel connect with more and more of Sargeroth's needy souls. Floatist ideals settled easily into the minds of the people, coupled with the settling of Zwickel's bread into their stomachs. Awareness of Floatism permeated slowly throughout all Sargeroth until Zwickel found himself offering spiritual advice to a seemingly never-ending slough of curious and spiritually-thirsty souls. Several of these early students opted to follow Veroth Schosen's example and become acolytes. Within two years of Zwickel's arrival, over twenty acolytes elected to live with their teacher at the Sanctuary, becoming the very first of what would later be known as the Floating Order of Clerics. ZWICKEL DEPARTS The solitary Brother Zwickel was overwhelmed by the response to his teachings. Tension with the staunchly anti-Floatist Kessels steadily grew. Blumen and Gloran officials watched the alarmingly rapid spread of Floatist ideology with increasing unease. Finally, after nearly getting ensnared in legal proceedings over teaching Floatist doctrine on Blumen property, Zwickel decided he'd had enough of Sargerithian bureaucracy. Later that night, Zwickel quietly packed a journal, along with some bread and water. He bid his acolytes a warm farewell and left the Sanctuary, walking off into the desert to embark on a lengthy sabbatical that would last for the remainder of his long life. FLOATING CHURCH ESTABLISHED In the absence of Brother Zwickel, the early Clerics elected one of themselves to a position of leadership over the nascent religion. The Cleric elevated to this position was none other than Brother Veroth, Zwickel's first student. Brother Veroth consolidated every scrap of Zwickel's teachings that could be found, holding these texts within the Floating Sanctuary. He then introduced a series of sweeping reforms. To start, Floatism was recognized by the Sargerithian government as an official state religion and therefore eligible for limited funding. With this act, the Floating Church as it is known today was born, with Brother Veroth established as its very first Pontifex. Next, Veroth constructed a more conventional place of worship within Sargeroth to promote greater inclusivity and ease of access with the people of Sargeroth, who previously had to venture beyond the Western Wall into the desert to worship at the Floating Sanctuary. Some controversy arose over the construction of this new church, which went against Brother Zwickel's opinion that all Floatist places of worship should not be touching the ground.